Spitfire22V's LD Mark VI build - Now Completed

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Hey guys,

Please don't hate me for this, but this was in fact an April Fool's joke. ;) I'm sorry, I couldn't help it!

The helmet is doing just fine, and I have not quit this build! :)

I've thought so. After I posted a response I thought hw could a series of unfortunate events could happen altogether. Only in movies. Nice one though.
 
Haha, yes I suppose that was a mean thing to do, but I really enjoy pranks. :p

I tried to make the tale as unlikely as possible, but perhaps I should have added absurd things like Unicorns to really hit home that it was not for real. ;)

Anyway, regarding the build....
I'm still waiting for an improvement in the weather around here to do some more work on the suit pieces. Really, any improvement would be welcome. This is very frustrating, as it's been hovering around 40 degrees F (~5 degrees C) and been overcast and raining for the past few days. Feels more like Winter still than Spring...
If the temps would at least go up a little, then I would Bondo and sand in the garage even if it rains. But at the moment, I just don't feel like working in the cold.

I'll try to find things I can work on to keep posting updates and keep up my momentum, but I apologize in advance if I am unable to show progress for longer than usual.
 
That sucks. If it makes you feel any better, its right around 77 degrees out here in Clearwater FL. I may need to bust out the sleeveless shirt today and maybe head out to the beach. I may work on my project tonight if the weather permits. The temp is suppose to drop down to the high 60's low 70's though. Well, will see. Lol:p
 
I may hate the fact that you live somewhere so warm Blackula. It's super sunny outside, but it's fake at only 49 degrees and a wind chill. I'm so ready to go to the beach!

Nice joke though! I have April Fools Radar, so I'm more gullible every other day of the year. Probably comes from living in a town where there's not a lot to do when you're a kid.
 
.... I was wondering how you couldn't manage to not catch your helmet BEFORE it.... rolled out the door. >=( but then again, some of us are much, MUCH..... slower than others.... :p
 
HEhehe, I was still at the first few sips of coffee that morn on 04-01-11 but at least you helped me get ready for all the practical jokers for that day. Just wished I could get away with that at work :D (sorry sir, but being you're so cool were not going to ticket and tow you're car today... April fools...... Nope, don't think the suits would like it.) ;)

now get some more of those great pic's up and/or an update we just can't wait that long to see how great you're next part will be. and thanks for the laugh again. :cool
 
That was one nasty April fool joke that you manage to pull that off. Stunned me for a miniute but when I looked at date and time that you put in I knew that might be a joke and I'm glad that it is.
 
Yup, it would be straight out of bad comedy movie if all those things actually happened and my helmet was destroyed! Again, sorry for the April fool's prank; I hope it doesn't stop you from checking out my build as it progresses!

That sucks. If it makes you feel any better, its right around 77 degrees out here in Clearwater FL. I may need to bust out the sleeveless shirt today and maybe head out to the beach. I may work on my project tonight if the weather permits. The temp is suppose to drop down to the high 60's low 70's though. Well, will see. Lol:p

See, now that is just mean! haha Pretty good payback for fooling you though. :) However, today we got a big break and the temps hit the 80's! :cool So, I spent some time outside removing the excess fiberglass from all the pieces, as well as grinding down edges and generally cleaning up the pieces in preparation for Bondo, which I will hopefully be doing in the coming days if the weather holds.
 
Oh god... I just read your tread you got some serious bad luck there but wait, can I share you my bad luck too?

My first mark VI armor was resin and I put it outside of my house overnight so it can dry and guess what I see in the morning... :eek :D :rolleyes ;) :angry

Ok.. I was like.. oh god my resined mark VI become somewhat can't be called armor anymore then I got aftershock for like a month...

Glad I have friends that keep telling me to never give up and I'm going to say that to you too! :) Keep going my friend. Master Chief is waiting for you! :D And yeah I ever have continuous MAX COMBO bad weather for a week and that drive me nuts!
 
Loool Great build mate and you guys are lucky xD, 40 degrees...70 degrees, jesus, best ive gotten in good ol'london is 14 degrees xD, lol i must say though your aprils fools joke was very well planned, for a minute their i was like Ouch that must be depressing.... :)
 
Yup, it would be straight out of bad comedy movie if all those things actually happened and my helmet was destroyed! Again, sorry for the April fool's prank; I hope it doesn't stop you from checking out my build as it progresses!



See, now that is just mean! haha Pretty good payback for fooling you though. :) However, today we got a big break and the temps hit the 80's! :cool So, I spent some time outside removing the excess fiberglass from all the pieces, as well as grinding down edges and generally cleaning up the pieces in preparation for Bondo, which I will hopefully be doing in the coming days if the weather holds.

Oh I didn't see that coming! I feel so shame now D: I hate uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu D::::::
 
Crystalmage, sorry to hear about the weather! It makes me feel a bit better, and I hope it improves for you

Constrictor, yes, it was just an April Fool's joke!

Thanks for the comment you two!

Well, it's been a while that I've posted a photo update, but I've been slowly and surely working on the suit. I don't want to sound like a broken record, but again my progress is being stalled by poor weather. I always forget that this is the time of year that the weather loses its mind! :rolleyes Case in point: yesterday, sunny and 80's...today, back to 40's and monsoon-like rain. :angry

Still working on the Bondo process, and even though it's nothing spectacular, I thought I'd post photos just to keep the thread going and end the drought between my last set of photos.

Yes, I am going heavy on the Bondo due to these being low-def parts. I want to smooth them out as much as possible. I know this isn't the ideal path to take, but I'm ok with it.

So far, the chest piece and the left greave is mostly Bondo-ed, the boots and cod piece are finished and awaiting sanding, and the left forearm piece has been sanded a bit, but needs more Bondo.

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Sorry I don't have more substantial progress to show! Please bear with me even though my progress has slowed a bit, and as I try to do accomplish as much as possible with the existing outside conditions.

Thanks for stopping by! :)
 
I know what you mean about the weather, i live in new england and it be as though in school its a nice day so im ready to work on it, but then its raining by the time i get home:angry
 
Looking good Spitfire22V, Sorry the weathers not cooperating. glad to see you are still working on it. To help make the low def parts look like Highdef, you could roll some rondo around on the side, or you could use bondo on the seems from the inside and sand through the paper(to take away some of the angular look). However, you may need to reinforce the seems with a little iber glass if you do that (Bondo 1st, Glass 2nd), because bondo tends to be brittle. Anyways, I'm sure it will turn ou fine.
 
whow! now you are a lot faster than me and they are all looking great. I feel a bit lazy because I ran into some problems and the weather here is up and down.
 
Thanks for the comments guys. Blackula, thanks for the advice; I considered applying Bondo to some inside corners for more material to shape, but so far I haven't felt the need to. However, I might to be able to even if I wanted since I have to admit my fiberglassing wasn't perfect, so the cloth doesn't lay down in the corners completely. It doesn't take away from the structural integrity (I think), but it does make rounding corners a little more problematic (there are some air voids in some corners).

Well, I've been chipping away at some work, taking advantage of the few and far-between nice weather days we've had. I'm pretty sure the weather is not usually this bad during Spring around here. :confused Today, it's been pouring rain all day with tornado warnings....but I still got some work done! haha! It was comfortably warm today, so I just worked in the garage with the door open.

A few days ago, I decided to work on the detail pieces for what I will call the "exhaust" vents on the shoulders of the chest piece. The low-def chest I'm using really has poor shaping in that area, so I decided to remedy this.
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Using some plywood, I built a frame, then I layered it with cardboard and screen mesh.
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Both pieces all put together.
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With a coat of primer to bring it all together. Once the chest piece is mostly finished (all Bondo-ed and sanded), I'll cut out the existing area and replace it with these pieces.
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I started working on finishing the boots too. First, I tcut off about 1 centimeter off of the bottom so they don't scrape the ground. I finished sanding only one of them so far. To be honest, I didn't spend too much time getting them absolutely perfect for several reasons:

1. They don't get as much attention as the rest of the suit.
2. They have a high risk of getting damaged or destroyed (I'm imagining people stepping on them by accident...)
3. Any sanding imperfections will most likely get washed out from the paint and weathering process.

I created the cardboard detail pieces, glued them on, and applied the preliminary coat of primer. You may also notice some detail grooves I grinded in with the Dremel per my reference photos.
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I also added some detail pieces to the front. These are simply strips of square wood split diagonally, glued on, then layered with a coat of epoxy to strengthen them.
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Finally, I finished sanding one of the thighs I had started on a looong time ago. It was one of the first pieces to be Bondo-ed and sanded. I finally finished it. Cardboard detail piece, grooves grinded in, primer (the process I'll use for all the remaining pieces).
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That's all for now. I will continue the Bondo + sanding process, I post updates as more and more pieces get finished. Thanks for stopping by and following my build! :)
 
I really appreciate the little detail touches you are doing. Like the vent covers and steps to the toe of the boots. Really cool man. As always, good work!
 
I agree with blackula! The minute details youre including in this are going to pay off big time in the end! Keep up the great work, it looks awesome!
 
Man you're build is really coming along nicely. The amount of detail that you put into every piece is just amazing. I just love you're updates just to see what you do next. Keep us posted.
 
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